The evolving landscape of children’s digital lives—how they access technology and how it affects them—has long been a subject of serious debate. Recently, states, governments and policymakers must take seriously the WHO’s warning that social media and AI pose a significant child-health issue. In a joint message, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and French President Emmanuel Macron stated that growing evidence links excessive digital exposure with anxiety, depression, poor sleep, aggression, loneliness, and—in severe cases—suicidal behaviour among children and adolescents. They also warned of rising online sexual exploitation, AI-generated child abuse imagery, misinformation, and targeted digital marketing.
The WHO further clarifies that children’s digital exposure—particularly to social media and AI—is a pressing public health concern. The algorithms driving these platforms are designed to maximise engagement rather than accuracy, exposing children to distorted health information, cyberbullying, and sexual exploitation, while also promoting sedentary behaviours that deepen loneliness.
The Indian Government has recently realised the pernicious effects of social media and AI-generated content on the well-being of children under 16. India, given its vast population, has over 1.1 billion smartphone connections and is home to one of the world’s largest populations of young internet users. According to a nationwide 2026 survey by the National Council of CBSE Schools, 74% of students spend more than two hours a day on screens for non-academic purposes; 21% spend over four hours a day on mobile devices, gaming, and social media. Furthermore, 69% of teachers report declining concentration and classroom attention, as students show little engagement in learning; 63% of children experience anxiety, irritability, or social withdrawal; and 69% report reduced participation in outdoor activities. This national survey was based on responses from 6.3 lakh respondents across India.
Similarly, the Economic Survey 2025–26 shows that over 32 lakh calls were received by Tele-MANAS—a Government of India initiative providing 24/7 mental health support—since its launch in October 2022. The survey also flags a high prevalence of social media addiction among 15- to 24-year-olds. Digital addiction has been identified as an emerging public health concern that affects children’s mental health, learning, and productivity. It also points out that excessive screen use is linked to anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, cyberbullying, compulsive scrolling, gaming disorders, and social withdrawal. During his recent visit to Australia, PM Modi took note of the beneficial effects of Canberra’s policy barring children under 16 from accessing platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, X, TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat.
Several Indian states are also planning to restrict social media access for children. Karnataka, for instance, has proposed a ban for users below 16; Andhra Pradesh for those under 13; and Goa is examining similar measures. As warned by the WHO, social media, online gaming, and generative AI should be treated as major detriments to children’s health. It urges governments to strengthen regulation of digital platforms and introduce age-appropriate safeguards for young users.
On July 13, 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledged to push for EU rules to restrict social media access to children. She said, “Social media is not a toy… Now we need action at European level.” The EC’s Special Panel on Child Safety Online found that nearly 60% of children and adolescents in Europe experience emotional and psychological problems online. The panel was also surprised to find that young people spend four to six hours a day on screens.
AI is not merely a tool; it is an agent capable of making its own decisions. It can spread hate, bias, and stereotypes, and generate prejudice that may divide and alienate children. It can reinforce negative beliefs and actions by creating artificial narratives. Moreover, it can erode privacy. AI collects vast amounts of data about us, often without our knowledge. For example, one toy was found to record conversations among parents, children, and anyone else nearby, with the ability to transmit that data to third parties. In fact, it is hard to keep up with reports on toys and devices that violate family privacy, but parents may want to avoid interactive toys that promise to “talk” with kids.
Generative AI can also be used to create false or distorted images of children, teens, or someone they know. Fake nudes, for instance, have been used to attack or shame many teenagers. Deepfakes and voice cloning can be used to threaten children into taking actions they would ordinarily never consider, such as giving out private information or sending money. Besides, they can flood kids with commercial messages; a child’s search history may make them the target of relentless ad campaigns that parents would prefer they not see.
On June 29, 2026, Tsinghua University in China published a report on current social media restrictions on minors worldwide. It examined policies implemented by countries through three approaches: setting a minimum age for access (as in Australia); requiring platforms to protect minors through application design, such as defaulting accounts to the highest privacy settings (as in the UK); and applying differentiated regulations based on age, content, and platform risk (as in Germany’s proposed legislation).
The report states that the stricter the age verification, the more likely it is to infringe on privacy, due to the need for users to provide additional personal details. Although more relaxed age verification protects individual privacy, it is easier for users to bypass. It adds that countries opting for blanket bans often do so because they have few or no major domestic social media platforms—such as Australia or Indonesia—while countries with homegrown platforms tend to favour more moderate regulation. In the case of Australia’s ban on social media use by minors, the report concludes that minors’ social needs have not been eliminated, but have instead shifted to spaces that are harder to regulate.
The report advocates for a tiered regulatory system based on two dimensions: user age and perceived platform risk to minors. For lower-risk platforms, users could be required to undergo facial age estimation or parental authentication. However, how to assess platform risk remains a moot point. According to a survey by Beijing Normal University conducted this March, approximately 82% of minors use social media. In 2019, China’s top internet regulator introduced “Youth Mode” on major video, livestreaming, and gaming platforms, limiting minors’ screen time, tipping, and in-game spending while pushing more educational content. This mode was extended to smart devices such as children’s watches in 2024. That same year, China’s first comprehensive regulations on protecting minors online took effect, covering internet addiction, cyberbullying, and the protection of minors’ personal data.
Professor Lei Li of Renmin University rightly observed: “Today’s adolescents are digital natives, and cyberspace has already become one of the spaces in which they grow up. Cutting them off from the internet runs contrary to how they are developing.” Some critics suggest that improving minors’ digital literacy would be more effective than external restrictions.
The writer holds a Master’s in Public Administration–Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University, New York.
